“He may not be the Gerrard of 5 yrs ago but even if he's slowed down a yard, he's still the best midfielder at the club. Unfortunately he's reached the stage of his career whereby every bad game he has it gets attributed to his age.”

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, who played alongside Owen and Gerrard at Anfield, has also backed the club’s decision.

“There’s going to be times when Gerrard has to come off the bench,” he told Sky Sports. “It was 0-0 (against Stoke City) when he came on and he wasn’t involved in the goal but he can make an impact from the bench.

“The manager can’t expect a player of that age, no matter his quality or what he’s done before, to play 90 minutes every single week, three times a week.

“He’s still a massive part of the team, never mind the squad. He is a vital part of the best team Liverpool put out but he can’t play every week. That’s just nonsensical.”

Pretty much everyone who has watched football agrees on the fact that Gerrard cannot play in every single match and needs to be rested from time to time.

The question is whether Gerrard would be happy with such a role. A hugely competitive footballer, the Englishman probably knows deep down that he is past his prime, but will he not get disappointed if he is regarded as an ‘impact sub’?

Subhankar Mondal

A football journalist based in Wakefield, Subhankar Mondal has previously worked for Goal.com International and Skysports.com, and has had his sports articles published in The Guardian and The Observer. He has also been on the BBC in the past and his name once found its way to the pages of the World Soccer magazine. He was recently cited in a major Louis van Gaal biography.